Hey ya’ll. Jef suggested I check out the links I listed before, because some places/people will (of course!) try to scam people out of their money using this tragedy. (people stink) So I looked up the hurricane on www.snopes.com (where I go to check all my stories!). That led me to the FEMA website, which has the following info on its homepage. You will notice that some of the links are redundant when compared to my previous post. Those are the places I would think are most reliable.
Cash Sought To Help Hurricane Victims, Volunteers Should Not Self-Dispatch
Release Date: August 29, 2005Release Number: HQ-05-177
» More Information on Alabama Hurricane Katrina» More Information on Mississippi Hurricane Katrina» More Information on Louisiana Hurricane Katrina» More Information on Florida Hurricane Katrina
Additional Hurricane Katrina Resources
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Voluntary organizations are seeking cash donations to assist victims of Hurricane Katrina in Gulf Coast states, according to Michael D. Brown, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response. But, volunteers should not report directly to the affected areas unless directed by a voluntary agency.
“Cash donations are especially helpful to victims,” Brown said. “They allow volunteer agencies to issue cash vouchers to victims so they can meet their needs. Cash donations also allow agencies to avoid the labor-intensive need to store, sort, pack and distribute donated goods. Donated money prevents, too, the prohibitive cost of air or sea transportation that donated goods require.”Volunteer agencies provide a wide variety of services after disasters, such as clean up, childcare, housing repair, crisis counseling, sheltering and food.
“We’re grateful for the outpouring of support already,” Brown said. “But it’s important that volunteer response is coordinated by the professionals who can direct volunteers with the appropriate skills to the hardest-hit areas where they are needed most. Self-dispatched volunteers and especially sightseers can put themselves and others in harm’s way and hamper rescue efforts.”
Here is a list of phone numbers set up solely for cash donations and/or volunteers.
Donate cash to:
American Red Cross1-800-HELP NOW (435-7669) English, 1-800-257-7575 Spanish;
Operation Blessing1-800-436-6348
America’s Second Harvest1-800-344-8070
Donate Cash and/or Volunteer
Adventist Community Services1-800-381-7171
B’nai B’rith International1-888-388-4224
Catholic Charities, USA1-800-919-9338
Christian Disaster Response 941-956-5183 or 941-551-9554
Christian Reformed World Relief Committee1-800-848-5818
Church World Service1-800-297-1516
Convoy of Hope417-823-8998
Corporation for National and Community Service Disaster Relief Fund(202) 606-6718
Feed the Children1-800-525-7575
Lutheran Disaster Response800-638-3522
Mennonite Disaster Service717-859-2210
Nazarene Disaster Response888-256-5886
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance800-872-3283
Salvation Army 1-800-SAL-ARMY (725-2769)
Southern Baptist Convention — Disaster Relief1-800-462-8657, ext. 6440
United Jewish Communities1-800-462-8657, ext. 6440
Union for Reform Judaism
United Methodist Committee on Relief1-877-277-2477
For further information: visit the website for the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) at: http://www.nvoad.org/.
This list of organizations is provided by the National Organization of Voluntary Agencies Active in Disaster. Please email EST-DONAT-A@dhs.gov if you are interested in having your organization added to the list.
Please check with your tax advisor or the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for more information regarding the tax deductibility of your donation.The listing of or omission of an institution or organization on this Web site does not refer to programmatic capability nor does it confer any official status, approval, or endorsement of the institution or organization itself. This listing does not purport to be a listing of all organizations that are providing relief in the affected area. Additionally, there may be organizations providing relief in the affected area that are not accepting donations at this time. It is not the purpose of this Web site to make, or enable to be made, any representation to the public concerning the organizations listed. This listing is for informational purposes only. Any contributions you choose to make from links on this Web site are at your sole discretion.
FEMA prepares the nation for all hazards and manages federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates mitigation activities, trains first responders, works with state and local emergency managers, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration. FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on March 1, 2003.
